Stove ventilating apparatus

ABSTRACT

Ventilating apparatus for cooking stoves and other appliances using hot oils and fats and including a duct having an entrance through which grease-laden air enters the duct. A cartridge positioned within the duct is reversible between two operative positions. This cartridge has a passage therethrough in which baffle means is located for causing grease to be deposited in the cartridge, the baffle means being such that it works effectively regardless of which of the two operative positions the cartridge is in. A spray is located above the cartridge to wash the grease off the baffle means and into a trough located beneath the cartridge.

United States Patent Russell June 6, 1972 [54] STOVE VENTILATINGAPPARATUS Primary Examiner-Edward J. Michael [72] Inventor: Kenneth S.Russell, 3928 Marine Drive,

West Vancouver, British Columbia, Attorney Fetherstonhaugh & Canada [57ABSTRACT [22] Filed: 1970 Ventilating apparatus for cooking stoves andother appliances [2 1] Appl. No.: 23,538 using hot oils and fats andincluding a duct having an entrance through which grease-laden airenters the duct. A cartridge positioned within the duct is reversiblebetween two operative C(iI. ..98/1 15 K positiom This cartridge has aPassage themhmugh in which "T baffle means is located for causing greaseto be deposited in [58] Field of Search ..98/ I 15, 1 l5 K thecartridge, the baffle means being such that it works effeo tivelyregardless of which of the two operative positions the [56] ReterencesCned cartridge is in. A spray is located above the cartridge to washUMTED STATES pATENTS the grease off the baffle means and into a troughlocated beneath the cartridge. 3,433,146 3/1969 Russell ..98/1 15 K2,259,626 10/1941 Erikson ..98/1 15 SB 1 Claims, 5 Drawing FiguresPATENTEBJUH 6 m 3,667, 371

SHEET '1 UF 2 mvem-on KENNETH S. RUSSELL ATTORN Y5 PATENTEDJun 6 m2SHEET 2 OF 2 INVENTOP KENNETH s RUSSELL STOVE VENTILATING APPARATUS Thisinvention relates to ventilating apparatus for stoves and the like forextracting grease from air that is being removed from around the stovesthrough the apparatus.

Apparatus is in use for ventilating areas having grease-laden therein.These remove a large percentage of the grease from the air, but theyhave to be washed down frequently to get the removed grease out of them.Apparatus of this nature is used in restaurants and similar places wherea great deal of cooking takes place. There is a tendency for theapparatus to become coated with grease. The apparatus includes spraymeans which is operable to direct wash water therethrough. When the washaction is started after the business closing hour, the apparatus iswashed down but becauseof the necessary bafile arrangement, it isdifficult to clean the underside of the apparatus, hence over a periodof time, there would be an unsightly buildup unless it is wiped orwashed by hand.

The present invention solves or reduces this problem by providing acartridge in the ventilating duct which can be quickly and easilyreversed between two operative positions to permit washing of thepreviously inaccessible surfaces. The cartridge has a passage extendingtherethrough which communicates at opposite ends with the duct, and inthis passage are baffle means arranged to change the direction of flowof the air to cause grease therein to be deposited in the cartridgeregardless of which end of the passage the air enters to travel throughthe cartridge. The baffle means in effect form a plurality of zigzagpassages through the cartridge, and some grease accumulates in the loweror underside passages, which is difficult for the spray wash to remove.When this starts to take place, the cange can be quickly turned over sothat the accumulation of grease can be washed away. This eliminates handwiping or washing operations to clean off the accumulated grease.

The preferred form of the invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which FIG. I is a perspective view of stove ventilatingapparatus in accordance with the present invention,

' FIG. 2 is a fragmentary vertical section through this apparatus,

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 33 of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a vertical section taken substantially on the line 4-4 of FIG.2, and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the reversible cartridge.

Referring to the drawings, is stove ventilating apparatus according tothe present invention mounted in operative position above a stove l 1.Although the apparatus may be used in association with any cookingappliance, stove l1 isan example of such an appliance, and it includes afrying plate 12 and a deep fry well 13. Apparatus 10 is mounted aboveand at the back of stove l l, and has a shelf or hood l5 placed aboveand extending outwardly over the work surface of the stove.

Apparatus 10 consists of a casing which is substantially the same widthas stove 11. This casing includes a lower section 22, an intermediatesection 23, and an upper section or plenum chamber 25. These sectionsopen into each other to form a duct 27 extending from the bottom to thetop of casing 20. Upper section has a top 29 which may be unbroken, orit may include removable covers 30 and 31 therein. A discharge duct 34extends upwardly from cover 29, and is connected to a ventilating pipe,not shown, which usually extends to the atmosphere outside the buildingin which the apparatus is located. Duct 27 and discharge duct 34actually form a ventilating duct extending from just above stove 1 l tothe outside atmosphere.

Lower section 23 of casing 20 is formed with a slot or entrance 36extending the width of the casing and opening into duct 27, thisentrance being located immediately below shelf or hood 15. A trough 38is formed at the bottom of casing section 22 below entrance 36, saidtrough being as wide from front to back as the portion of duct 27 withinintermediate section 23 of the casing. Trough 38 slopes laterally to anoutlet 39 from which a drain pipe 40 extends. This pipe is connected toa suitable drain, not shown.

A suitable damper, controls therefor, and fire-prevention controls areusually provided in the upper section 25 of casing 20, but as these donot form part of the present invention, they are not illustrated ordescribed herein.

It is desirable to provide spray means in duct 27 for cleaning purposesand for preventing fire from starting in the duct or for putting out anyfire that might get started therein. For this purpose, a spray tube 44extends across the duct in upper section 25 above intermediate section23. This tube extends completely across the apparatus and is preferablyremovably mounted therein. The tube is connected to a fluid source,preferably a water source, not shown, when the apparatus is in use. Thetube may have a plurality of perforations therein for directing fluidinto the main duct,but it is preferable to provide a plurality ofnozzles 45 so that the liquid is sprayed throughout the duct. Thesenozzles are directed generally downwardly so that they direct wateragainst the side walls of upper section 25, intermediate section 23 andthrough this section. The water washes grease off the surfaces withwhich it comes into contact, and dirty water flows into trough 38 andthence out of the apparatus through drain pipe 40.

A reversible baffle cartridge 50 is removably mounted in duct 27 inintermediate. section 23 thereof. This cartridge has end walls 52 and53, side walls 55 and 56 and substantially parallel main walls 58 and59. Walls 58 and 59 are fonned with large aligned openings 61 and 62therein, said openings extending the width of the cartridge which, inturn, extends the width of duct 27. Cartridge 50 is hollow so that itforms a passage 64 between openings 61 and 62 and opening into duct 27above and below the cartridge.

A plurality of laterally spaced, generally vertical zigzag baf: fies 67are mounted in passage 64 of cartridge 50, dividing the latter into aplurality of zigzag channels 69. The zigzags of baffles 67 are of suchmagnitude that portions of each baffle overlap portions of each adjacentbaffle so that no air cantravel straight through cartridge passage 64.For example, the portion 71 of one of the baffles overlaps the portion72 of the adjacent baffle, see FIG. 2. As a result of this'arrangement,air traveling through any of the channels 69 in the cartridge cannotflow straight through from opening 62 to opening 61 of the cartridge andmust make at least one right-angle turn in each channel. In theillustrated example, the air must make two substantially right-angleturns in opposite directions while traveling through any one of channels69.

By referring to FIG. 2, it will be seen that each channel 69 hasopposite ends which coincide with the oppositeends of cartridge passage64, and these ends .are positioned at openings 61 and 62 in the mainwalls 58 and 59 of the cartridge. It will be noted that the cartridgepassage and the channels therein are identical as far as air movingtherethrough is concerned when the cartridge rests in the operativeposition shown in FIG. 2, or when the cartridge is turned over andplaced in the same operative position within duct 27. With the cartridgeplaced as shown, opening 62 forms the entrance end of the channels,while opening 61 forms the exit end of said channels, but when thecartridge is turned over, opening 61 forms the entrance end whileopening 62 forms the exit end.

Cartridge S0 is positioned in duct 27 so that it operates effectivelyregardless of which way it is turned, and it is located relative toentrance 36 so that it can be quickly and easily removed from and placedinto the duct through said entrance' Supports are provided in duct 27for the cartridge. in the illustrated example, these comprise ahorizontal bracket 76 mounted on the front wall of section 23immediately above entrance 36, and a horizontal rib 77 formed in therear wall of casing 20 below the level of bracket 76 and in line withentrance 36. Supporting means is providedon cartridge 50 to cooperatewith these supports. Projections 80 and 81 are formed on opposite sidewalls 55 and 56 of the cartridge and preferably extend the lengththereof, as shown in FIG. 5. Projections 80 and 81 form inter-mediateshoulders 83 and 84 projecting from the cartridge sides and spaced fromwalls 58 and 59 thereof. Projection 80 extends from shoulder 83 towardsmain wall 58 and forms an outer shoulder 86 adjacent said wall.Similarly, projection 81 extends from intermediate shoulder 84 towardswall 59 and forms an-outer shoulder 87 adjacent said wall.

When cartridge 50 is positioned in duct 27 as shown in FIG. 2,intermediate shoulder 83 rests on bracket 76, while outer shoulder 87rests on rib 77. This retains the lower portion of the cartridge in linewith duct entrance 36, and opening 62 is the entrance for channels 69,while opening 61 is the exit for said channels. When the cartridge isturned over, intermediate shoulder 84 rests upon bracket 76 and outershoulder 86 rests upon rib 77 so that the cartridge is operative exactlythe same as when it was in the first position; In the latter case,opening 7 61 forms the entrance for the cartridge channels, whileopening 62 fonns the exit thereof.

During operation of apparatus 10, grease-laden air from above stove 11is directed by hood 15 through entrance 36 into duct 27. This airtravels upwardly through channels 69 of cartridge 50 and out throughdischarge duct 34. As the air moves through the zigzag channels 69, thegrease is deposited upon the surfaces of baffles 67. The spray equipmentis operated periodically so that spray pipe 44 directs the cleaningfluid into and through passages 69 and over the surfaces of baffles 67.This washes the grease off of the exposed baffle surfaces. However,there is a tendency for the grease to remain on the baffles near theentrances of the zigzag channels because the wash cannot efi'ectivelyget at it. When this occurs, cartridge 50 can be turned over so that thegrease will be exposed to the direct wash action. The fact that thecartridge is reversible eliminates the need for removal of the cartridgeto thoroughly wash. As hot water is usually sprayed on the cartridge,this results in a larger percentage of the accumulated grease beingremoved than would be the case if it were still down in the entranceends of the channels.

I claim:

l. Stove ventilating apparatus comprising a substantially vertical ducthaving an entrance in one side thereof and through which grease-ladenair enters the duct in a substantially horizontal direction, a removablereversible cartridge positioned within the duct and having a pluralityof laterally spaced zigzag baffles therein forming a plurality ofgenerally vertical zigzag channels opening out at opposite ends from opposite substantially horizontal surfaces of the cartridge to communicatedirectly with the duct above and below the car tridge, said channelshaving lower portions inclined in a downward direction away from theentrance and upper portions inclined upwardly in the opposite directionto said lower portions when the cartridge is in operative position inthe duct, said grease-laden air having to make a sharp turn back fromits horizontal flow to enter said channels thereby causing a largeportion of grease to separate from the air under centrifugal actionbefore reaching the cartridge, projections formed on opposite side wallsof the cartridge and extending longitudinally of said cartridge, saidprojections fonning outwardly projecting intermediate shoulderssubstantially midway between said horizontal surfaces, each of saidprojections extending from the intermediate shoulder formed therebytowards one of said horizontal surfaces, to form an outer shoulderadjacent said one horizontal surface, the outer shoulders of theopposite side walls being adjacent opposite horizontal surfaces of thecartridge, and a support on each of opposite walls of the duct, one ofsaid supports being positioned immediately above the passage entranceand the other of said supports being below the level of said one supportand across the duct from said entrance, said cartridge being positionedin the duct with one intermediate shoulder resting on the support abovethe duct entrance and the outer shoulder on the opposite side of thecartridge resting on the support across the duct from the entrancethereof, whereby the cartridge can be turned over and be properlypositioned and operative in the duct but cannot be positioned other thanwith the lower portions of the channels inclined in the downwarddirection away from the duct entrance.

1. Stove ventilating apparatus comprising a substantially vertical ducthaving an entrance in one side thereof and through which grease-ladenair enters the duct in a substantially horizontal direction, a removablereversible cartridge positioned within the duct and having a pluralityof laterally spaced zigzag baffles therein forminG a plurality ofgenerally vertical zigzag channels opening out at opposite ends fromopposite substantially horizontal surfaces of the cartridge tocommunicate directly with the duct above and below the cartridge, saidchannels having lower portions inclined in a downward direction awayfrom the entrance and upper portions inclined upwardly in the oppositedirection to said lower portions when the cartridge is in operativeposition in the duct, said grease-laden air having to make a sharp turnback from its horizontal flow to enter said channels thereby causing alarge portion of grease to separate from the air under centrifugalaction before reaching the cartridge, projections formed on oppositeside walls of the cartridge and extending longitudinally of saidcartridge, said projections forming outwardly projecting intermediateshoulders substantially midway between said horizontal surfaces, each ofsaid projections extending from the intermediate shoulder formed therebytowards one of said horizontal surfaces to form an outer shoulderadjacent said one horizontal surface, the outer shoulders of theopposite side walls being adjacent opposite horizontal surfaces of thecartridge, and a support on each of opposite walls of the duct, one ofsaid supports being positioned immediately above the passage entranceand the other of said supports being below the level of said one supportand across the duct from said entrance, said cartridge being positionedin the duct with one intermediate shoulder resting on the support abovethe duct entrance and the outer shoulder on the opposite side of thecartridge resting on the support across the duct from the entrancethereof, whereby the cartridge can be turned over and be properlypositioned and operative in the duct but cannot be positioned other thanwith the lower portions of the channels inclined in the downwarddirection away from the duct entrance.